The Belle of the Ball
by ShadowVixxen
Summary: This is a small series that popped into my head. When Princess Mayuri's elder sister Arianna gets married, Mayu fears the loneliness that will come when her sister leaves for her husbands desert kingdom. But, at the ball celebrating her sisters wedding, her heart is stolen by a masked man...
1. Chapter 1

Not a soul in the castle questions the hurried footsteps of the strawberry blonde princess as she checks every single room for her younger sister. Frustrated, Arianna growls and, in a single movement, catches a servant boy by the collar as he rushes by. She takes a deep breath before speaking. "Have you seen Mayuri?"

"Y-yes ma'am." The boy toys with his fingers as Ari lets go of his collar. She waits, hands on the hips of her icy aquamarine gown, and stares down the kitchen hand.

"Well?"

"…She made me promise not to tell anyone where she went." The lad won't look the eldest princess in the eyes. "She said especially not to tell you."

Arianna releases an exasperated sigh and pinches the bridge of her nose. "Of course she did." She suddenly gets an idea and smiles at the boy. "How about this: can you tell me the places she's not?"

The servant, happy to be out of trouble with the princess, nods eagerly. "She's not in the castle and she's not in the village."

That left the castle grounds, which were acres and acres of land. That didn't exactly narrow things down. Arianna sighs and pats the boy on the head. "Thank you. You may go."

The boy scurries away and out of sight around the corner as Arianna racks her brain for the possible locations of her run-away sister.

"Princess?" Ari looks up to see the boy sheepishly peeking his head around the corner. "The princess Mayuri has taken to the daffodils blooming in the gardens outside her room…"

The gazebo. It's not easily seen from anywhere on the grounds and it's surrounded by flowers. Ari smiles at the boy before hitching up her skirts and running, well as much as her high heels would allow, in the direction specified.

~ view change ~

Mayuri sits on the bench in the gazebo, delicately running her fingertips along the petals of the daffodil in her hand, and sighs. There was a ball going on inside and here she was, avoiding it. She didn't want to go inside, the party was in honor of her sisters wedding and, not that she wasn't happy for her sister, but she wasn't too keen on celebrating her sisters eventual move to the desert.

She sighs and closes her honey-colored eyes as the sound of irritated footsteps reach her ears. Mayuri winces as her sister taps her foot on the painted wooden floor of the gazebo. "…Hi Ari."

"Mayuri, what do you think you're doing?" Arianna narrows her eyes at her sister and folds her arms. "We're expected at the party in less than five minutes and we don't have time to play hide-and-seek."

"Yeah well, I have nothing to celebrate." Mayuri meets her sisters gaze and everything goes silent for a moment. "Yeah, I'm happy for you and Gaara but that doesn't mean I have to celebrate it. You're going to leave for his castle in a week and leave me here all alone."

"Is that what this is about?" Ari smiles and sits next to her sister. "Mayu, you know you can always come visit me and Gaara adores you."

"Well yeah but I can't stay with you all the time." Already won over, Mayuri looks down at the daffodil in her lap. "I'll be here all by myself a lot of the time. And you know what happens when I get bored."

"Well why don't we go inside huh? You can always meet someone you can be friends with." Ari stands and helps her sister into her heels before leading her back towards the castle. "You might even meet Prince Uchiha."

Mayuri recoils and gives Ari a look of incredulity. "That self-absorbed, power hungry jackass? No thanks. He's creepy."

Arianna laughs and links her arm through her sisters. "Come on, lets go inside."

~ view change ~

A blonde haired peasant eyes the party through the big windows on the east side of the room and slips on a wicked smile. He retreats back into the bushes and rights his outfit before slipping on a black mask and heading into the party.

He ducks through the guards in a crowd of posh party guests and slips into the grand hall. He smiles smugly to himself as he heads over towards a darker corner of the room. Kiba owed him dinner for a week. He snatches a thin glass of alcohol from a wandering servant and sips it, relishing in the light bubbly flavor as fanfare catches the attention of the guests.

"Announcing the newlywed Prince Gaara and Princess Arianna."

Naruto's blue eyes glance up in time to see the ginger-haired prince escort the elder princess down the stairs and onto the marble floor. He shrugs and goes back to his drink, the eldest princess was nothing he wasn't used to. Often alluded to the brightness and joy of the sun, she often rode into the village and Naruto adored her sorrel steed Mischief, correctly named for the trouble the horse was often in.

"Announcing Her Highness Princess Mayuri."

This time, Naruto's eyes darted swiftly to the staircase. The younger of the sisters was rumored to be the moon incarnate, luminescent and cold. She didn't often leave the castle and this was a rare occasion that she actually showed up for a party. He very nearly dropped his glass.

The fair skinned, silver haired princess looked out at the crowd and even from this distance Naruto could see her sigh, not bothering to contain her dislike for the event. She dressed in an ocean blue color with sparkling silver trim and has a black ribbon holding a crisp daffodil in her hair. She descended the steps and slowly the chatter and music starts up again. For some reason, Naruto iss mesmerized by the younger princess.

He makes his way over towards the family, knowing that since all the men are wearing masks he could easily be mistaken for a lord or something. To his dismay, someone got there first. Naruto watches in disappointment as Prince Hyuga whisks Mayuri onto the dance floor. Sighing, Naruto moves back to his corner, downing the rest of his drink and getting halfway through another before a pink haired lady asks him to dance.

~ view change ~

Mayuri slides on a smile as Prince Lee steps on her foot for the hundredth time. Though, honestly she had no idea how he'd managed to step on her THAT many times, she'd only been dancing with him for a minute.

"You're a wonderful dancer Princess!" Lee lifts her into the air on a spin as per the dance and smiles at her brightly. "I could dance with you all night!"

Unable to really be upset with him, despite her possibly broken toes, she smiles back at him as she steps into the next phase of the dance. "You as well Prince Lee."

Mayuri twirls away from the prince as the music restarts and into the arms of her least favorite bachelor: Prince Sasuke Uchiha. Not even bothering to hide her distaste she narrows her eyes but continues to dance with him. "Prince Uchiha."

"Well if it isn't the beautiful princess," Sasuke smiles at her and pulls her closer to his torso. "Right in my arms where you belong."

"Excuse me?" Mayuri, afraid to tip off her sister, continues to dance with the letch as his hands slide down her waist.

"Well now that your sister is married, it makes sense that you would be next in line." Sasuke smiles at her and Mayuri has to concentrate to restrain herself from punching him. "I, of course, am the best bachelor. Don't worry, you'll enjoy being my wife."

"Oh really?" Mayuri slides on a sickly sweet smile as the music begins to die down again, signaling another partner change. Mayuri stamps as hard as she possibly can on his foot and he has to bite back a curse because Mayuri is twirled out of his arms and into the arms of a masked blonde with eyes the color of the ocean. "…Hi."

"Hi…" He smiles at her as they fall into the last part of the dance. The dashing smile and confidence has Mayu quite entranced and he is, by far, the best partner she's had all night. He twirls her around as the music ends and lowers her into a deep, graceful dip. Their eyes lock and Mayu finds herself unable to speak.

They share a smile as he brings her back to her feet and the music completely dies out. Mayuri doesn't move from his embrace and he doesn't let her go. "I'm Mayuri…"

"I know." Another song starts up and he brings the back of her hand to his lips. "May I…?"

She nods and he swings her back into step. Mayuri, so enraptured by the masked debonair, doesn't notice everyone staring at them, whispering about the unknown identity of the man who's captured the princess' attention.

They swirl around the dance floor, everything outside their little sphere melted away until they find themselves outside on the terrace without knowing how exactly they got there.

"Oh my…" Mayuri steps back from him but not out of his arms and smiles, slightly embarrassed. "I wonder how we got all the way out here."

"I don't mind." The masked blonde places her arm through his and leads her towards a stone bench at the edge of the terrace. "I like spending time with you."

Mayuri blushes as they sit down and slip into conversation. For once, Mayuri feels largely at ease with someone who isn't her sister. Even around her own father Mayuri was nervous and stumbled over her words. But this man, he made her feel relaxed and comfortable enough to smile and really be herself. He was just so… wonderful.

The clock bells ring out, startling the couple who were previously unaware of the time. "I'm sorry my princess, but I must go." The masked man stands and looks back towards the party, then back at Mayuri. "I've had the most amazing of nights Princess." He gets down on one knee in front of her and envelopes one of her hands with both of his. "I'll never forget tonight. Never."

"Can't I at least know your name?" Mayuri reaches up and removes the daffodil from her hair, holding it out to him in exchange. The man takes the flower from her and smiles, leaning up and kissing her cheek as he whispers in her ear. Then, just like that, he steps away and disappears into the night, leaving the star struck girl out on the terrace alone with nothing but a name.

"Kit…"


	2. Chapter 2

"Good morning Daddy!" Mayuri, in a light yellow sundress, flounces into the room and plants a kiss on her fathers temple, smiling like a care-free child. The king and the servants in the room all just stare, dumbfounded at the usually sullen princess' bright behavior. Oblivious to the shocked looks around her, Mayuri glances over the breakfast table, picks out a bowl of strawberries and a roll, and giggles. "I'm going to eat out in the garden if you don't mind Daddy."

She spins on her heel, a plump red strawberry already heading for her lips, and walks towards the door. Arianna, barely awake and haphazardly dressed, walks past her sister who just smiles and wiggles her fingers in a wave, strawberry captured between her teeth as she heads out of the room. Ari just stares, this is the third day in a row Mayu has kept up this cheerful attitude and frankly Ari wants to know why. When she sits down at the breakfast table, Arianna finds out she's not the only one curious.

"Have you noticed something… different about your sister lately Arianna?" The king cuts his meat seemingly uninterested.

"Oh, you mean her complete personality shift?" Arianna, cranky when first awoken, grabs a roll and begins buttering it. "Yeah I noticed."

"Would you have any idea as to the root of her transformation?" He swallows and selects a roll. "Not that I'm complaining. It's about time Mayuri stopped acting like a child and started acting like a princess, but I do wonder about how quickly it's happened…"

"I wouldn't know. Gaara and I have been so busy planning for the move that I haven't really been able to spend time with her…" More awake than a few moments ago, Arianna recalls the masked man at the ball that seems to have triggered her sisters… personality flip. Perhaps she could ask her sister what was going on. "Why don't you let me talk to her? She'll never open up to you but me…"

The king glances up at his eldest daughter finally, his gray eyes swimming with consideration. It was true, Mayuri was a lot like him: quiet and serious but fair and considerate. She seemed to have inherited her unpredictable behavior and all-consuming emotions from her mother though. Where as the roll-munching rag-a-muffin before him was almost their mother, his late wife, incarnate: outspoken and strong yet tactful and obedient. Finally, he nods and goes back to his food. "You're right. You should be the one to talk to her."

~ view change ~

Moments later, Arianna walks in sight of the gazebo her sister loves so much and finds her sister dreamily eating strawberries and smiling at a rather tall daffodil through the spaces in the fencing. Ari is completely intrigued by her sisters behavior and as she walks closer… wait… is Mayu _singing_?!

Mayu finishes her song just as Ari comes into the gazebo. She smiles at Arianna and offers her the strawberry bowl. "Wonderful morning isn't it? Perfect for eating strawberries outside."

"Who are you and what have you done with my sister?" Ari folds her arms, waiting for her sister's answer with a serious but yet playful look on her face.

"Ari, it's me. Mayu?" She giggles and produces a brush from the bench beside her. "Will you sit and brush my hair for me? You know how terrible I am with the back."

Ari shakes her head with a smile before taking the brush and beginning on her sister's hair. Mayuri hums softly to herself as she closely inspects every strawberry before eating it. They fall into a rhythm until Mayuri is dozing off in front of Arianna. The elder sister puts the brush down and puts a gentle hand on her sister's shoulder. "Can we talk for a minute?"

"Mhmm…" Mayuri sits up, empty strawberry bowl falling from her lap as she rubs her eyes and looks at her sister. "What's up?"

"That's what I'm going to ask you," Arianna says cautiously. If you were going to outright ask Mayu something, you needed to do it carefully. "You've been so… happy lately I've been wondering how come."

Mayuri blinks at her sister for a minute before smiling more to herself than at her sister and folds her fingers together. "Well I… I met someone."

Arianna absorbs this information for a second before nearly toppling over in an attempt to get closer to her sister. "Who?! Where did you meet him?! What's his name?!"

"Ari take a breath." Mayuri giggles to herself before looking off into the distance. "We danced at the ball. He was… wonderful. I don't know how else to explain it, I just…" She lets out a love-sick sigh and smiles softly. "I'm in love."

"What's his name?"

"That's the thing. I don't think he gave me his real name." Mayuri takes on a serious, thoughtful look. "I'm pretty sure he gave me an alias or a nickname."

"Well tell me and I can help you find him." Ari smiles and puts a hand on her sister's knee. "Anything I can do to help."

"Well…" Mayuri smiles at her sister. "He told me his name is "Kit." No first name, no last name. Do you know anyone that might go by that name?"

Arianna simply stares at her sister for a second. Yes, she did know someone by that name but it was impossible. It couldn't be him… Could it? Ari wouldn't put it past him to sneak into an event uninvited but… She stands up and hands her sister the brush, sort of forcing a smile at her confused sister. "Let me go check around for you, okay?"

"Okay!" Mayu smiles and waves as her sister turns on her heel and starts towards the stables, mind focused on her mission.

~ view change ~

Naruto lazily brushes the russet colored steed in front of him, fantasizing about silver hair and eyes the color of sunshine, when he hears the tell-tale thundering of a horse heading towards the stables at the edge of the village. He pats the horse on the side before exiting the stall and heading out to the stable entrance. "Good morning Princess Arianna! What brings you into the village?"

"Oh you know, just checking up on a few things," she replies as he takes her reins and leads her to the dismounting block.

"How was the ball?" Naruto asks, holding out his hand so she can dismount.

"Oh, perhaps I should ask you _Kit_, seeing as you were there."

Naruto barely catches her as she dismounts and swallows as she levels her bright blue eyes at him. "W-Well that's just crazy. If I had been caught at an event like that without an invitation, I would be sent to prison. As you can see, I'm standing here where I always am."

Arianna grabs his shirt to keep him from trying to run from her and looks at him in complete seriousness. "I am the only person who calls you Kit, now how would my sister know that name? I didn't tell it to her, and she says the masked man at the ball is the one who told it to her."

Naruto nervously avoid her gaze, then sighs, knowing he's been caught. Arianna lets go of his shirt and puts her hands on her hips in satisfaction.

"Look, I went as a bet with one of the guys in the village." Naruto sits down on a random piece of wood, offering the princess his chair, and looks at the pieces of straw between his feet. "But I got there and saw Princess Mayuri. It was like something inside me shifted. Then we ended up together in the partner dance and it was instant." He looks up at Arianna with eyes full of awe and slightly glazed over with the memory. "I fell in love with her."

"Well that's good to know," the princess replies, pulling invisible strands of hay off her skirts. "Especially considering my sister feels the same way about you."

"What?!" Naruto stands up so quickly that his log topples over and he takes a step forward. The princess? In love with him?!

"I want my sister to be happy." Arianna smiles and turns her back to Naruto, folding her hands behind her back. "The last two days Mayu has been the happiest I've seen her in a long time. If you are what makes her happy Kit…" Arianna turns around and smiles at him warmly. "I fully approve."

A warmth fills Naruto and he gives in to the urge to hug the strawberry-blonde in front of him. Arianna giggles and takes a step back. "I can arrange for you to meet her. Listen carefully…"

~ view change ~

Mayuri sits on the balcony outside her room, brushing her hair on the lounge one of the servants had pulled out there for her and day dreaming about masked men. Her eyes drift up to the nearly full moon in the starry sky and amuses herself with the idea that, perhaps, her mystery man is looking up at the moon and thinking about her. She sighs and mechanically ties her hair back with the usual black ribbon, deciding that even for a girl her age those kinds of thoughts were a little farfetched.

She blinks and looks from side to side, making sure no one is watching, before heading over to the balcony rail and expertly swinging her legs over it. She sits on the ledge, the rush from the sheer height of the potential fall and the forbidden act itself giving her goose-bumps despite the warm night.

She closes her eyes and just lets the wind blow through her hair, allowing herself to pretend she's someone else for just a moment. But then, someone calls her name and she madly scrambles back to the safe side of the railing.

"Princess! Are you alright?" Mayuri looks over the edge of the railing to see the masked man standing below her balcony in the entrance of her gazebo. Her heart flutters and she suddenly stands and leans over the railing with a bright smile.

"Kit!" Her heart beats faster as he smiles back at her, blue eyes glittering through his mask. "What are you doing here?"

"I had to see you." He takes a step towards her and holds out a hand. "I couldn't stand to be away any longer."

A light blush paints her cheeks and Mayu finds herself smiling in her excitement. She looks from side to side again and bends over the railing. "Stay there. I'll be right down."

She runs out of her room, bare feet not making a single sound on the flooring as her hair flies out behind her. Her heart races as she races out of the castle and down the trail towards the gazebo. Then, unwelcome, the thought crosses her mind that she might be imagining him. Her feet slow to a halt just out of sight of the gazebo and she holds a shaking fist to her chest. He seemed so real…

She physically shakes the thought out of her head and quickly checks her appearance in the fountain nearby before heading to see him. Her cheeks are flushed and her hair is slightly windblown but otherwise she looks fine. Though, she mentally wishes she'd thought to put on something more appropriate, the nightdress she had put on had half sleeves and a scoop neck, but the lacey hem barely graces her upper thighs.

She slips a strand of hair behind her ear before rounding the corner and walking towards the gazebo. There, dressed in black pants and a black coat, is Kit who had been inspecting the flowers around the gazebo but turned to her at the sound of her footsteps.

Mayuri stops two paces away and, as soon as their eyes meet, knows this is no mirage. It's really him. Kit closes the space between them and smiles at her, his fingers reaching up and lightly touching her cheek. "Princess I…"

"Mayu." Mayu lifts her golden eyes to his and smiles. "Call me Mayu."

Something changes in his face and he touches his forehead to hers, a smile playing his lips. "Mayu. It's beautiful."

She blushes and her eyes glance to the bottom right corner before she looks back up at him. He links his fingers through hers and looks into her eyes. "Do you know that you're beautiful?"

Mayuri blushes and squeezes his hand. "Flattery is completely unnecessary."

"Ah, but there is a difference between flattery and the truth my love." Naruto's ears perk up as he hears a twig snap. Deciding to take the more cautious route, Naruto presses his lips against Mayu's forehead and holds her close. "I'm sorry, but I have to leave again."

"When will I see you again?" Mayu is completely unwilling to let him out of her sight again, but he's already pulling away. "There's a lake to the west of the village, do you know it?"

Naruto nods, pulling away more.

"My family has a cottage on the far lakeshore. Meet me there right after sunset." His fingers slide through hers and away. "Until then!"


End file.
